Coal-sifter



I w. H; LARAWAY.

COAL SIFT ER. APPUCA'HON FlL ED DEC.27, 1919.

1 3613.67, Patentd Dec. 7,1920.

Wilu'mn H. La ra wag WILLIAM H. LARAWAY, OF GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN.

COAL-SIFTER.

earner.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. *7, 1920.

Application filed December 27, 1919. Serial No. 347,863.

be readily separated and each stored en tirely separate from the other; second, to provioe a means whereby the separation of partly burned coal and ashes may be read ily accomplished without danger of filling the surrounding atmosphere, and adjacent objects with ash dust, and, third, to promeans whereby the separation of the ashes from the coal will. be as nearly com- I plete and perfect as possible, and will be both expeditious and cleanly.

I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a perspective of my implement complete with the hopper door open. Fig. 2 is a cross section of the implement practically on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a top plan of the same with the hopper door removed to show the relative positions of the several separating elements in the hopper. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section of the implement practically on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a plan of the sifting plate, and Fig. 6 is an edge view of the same indicating a means for providing against the escape of large pieces of coal at the ends of the plate, or of lodgment of such pieces of coal between the ends of the plate and the ends of the hopper to obstruct the free movement of the plate longitudinally, when sifting the ashes from the coal.

Similar reference numerals indicate similar parts throughout the several views.

In the construction of this implement I provide a receiving hopper 1, mounted upon a base 2 having divided receiving bins 7 and 5, the one for the reception of the ashes and dust directly from the sifting plate, and the other for the reception of the separated coal when the sifting plate is dumped. The sifting plate consists of an open frame 8 having a proper screen, as 8' mounted thereon covering the opening in the frame. The frame is so mounted in the base of the hopper 1, by means of the gudgeons, or shaft 6 and 6, that it may be made to reciprocate longitudinally in the hopper, by any available method, as by pulling and pushing upon the handle or cross bar at the end 6 of the shaft.

To provide against the danger of lumps of coal falling throu h between the ends of the sieve frame and the ends of the hopper I provide cross bars 10separate from the sieve frame and place some thin metal or screen 15 thereon in such a manner that when the frame 8 is forced toward either end of the hopper it will be forced under the overlapping plates or screens 15, which keeps the space closed against the passage of either coal or ashes. These cross bars are held and forced away from the ends of the frame 8 by means of any available form of spring, as indicated at 11 in Fig. 3. This will, as will be readily understood, not only hold the bars 10 away from the ends of the frame 8, but will so apply them that they will not, in any way, interfere with dumping the sieve to discharge coal therefrom into the bin 5. While the hopper may be made plain and successfully operated, I prefer to form it as a funnel having inwardly inclined walls 12, so the coal and ashes, when being shoveled into the hopper will be made to accumulate at or near the center of the sieve. To dump the sieve to discharge coal it is only necessary to properly operate the crossbar at the end 6 of the shaft 6. 6'.

To properly distribute the coal and dust in the bins 7 and 5', I place a gate 13 pivotally mounted upon the partition between these bins in such a manner that when the sieve is in normal position. the ashes a will all be deposited in the bin 7 a part of them by sliding in upon the inclined surface of the gate 13 and the balance by passing directly through the sieve immediately over the bin. The ashes are extracted from the coal by alternately pushing and pulling upon the cross-bar at 6 and thus causing the sieve and its frame to reciprocate lengthwise under the pile of unsifted co l unt l all ashes are remo ed and properly deposited in the bin 7. Then the coal and ashes at (7-6 have been fully separated the sieve frame may be thrown into the position indicated by its dotted lines in Fig. 2, when the pin 16, securely connected with the side of the frame 8, will press upon the upper edge of the gate 13 and force it over into the position indicated by its dotted lines, and allow all the coal, (Z, that has been left upon the sieve to slide off into the bin 5. The gate 13 is pivotally mounted upon the upper edge of the partition that divides the two bins, as at b, so it may be made to operate freely under the influence of the movements of the sieve frame, v

I provide against the danger of the'gate 13 being carried too far over by the action of the pin 16, by placing a light spring, as

14, upon the edge of the sieve frame 8 in such a position that when the gate is carried backward it will engage said spring, and when the gate is swung back into normal position the force'of this spring against the gate will be sufiicient to force it back into position with its edge contacting with the stop or support'9.

The bin 7 is a removable drawer that may be drawn outwardly for the purpose of removing and emptying the ashes e, and the coal may be removed by opening the door 5, pivotally secured to the receptacle 2 as at a,

and shoveling the coal out in the usual manner.

To avert the dan er of floatin dust esca ing from the hopper 1 when separating the V ashes from the coalI hinge a door 4 to the upper edge of the hopper, that may be opened and closed'at pleasure, as indicated in Fig. 2.

I prefer that the separator be supported upon legs 3, as being more convenient of use,

especially in removing the coal from the bin 5.

What I claim as new in the art, is

1. In a coal sifter, a base divided to form separate bins one of said bins removable, a gate pivotally mounted upon the upper edge of the division between the bins, a hopper mounted above the base, a fiat revoluble sieve, longitudinally reciprocatory, mounted between the base and the hopper, means for opening and closing the gate, a bar at each end of, and parallel with the sieve frame, a spring mounted between the ends of the sieve frame and each bar and arranged to hold the bars normally away from the frame and plates secured to the upper surface of said bars and made to extend over the ends of the frame so the frame may be made to reciprocate under said plates.

2. In a coal sifter, a base partitioned to form separate bins, a gate pivotally mounted upon the upper edge of the partition, a hopper above the base and gate, a longitudinally and revolubly adjustable sieve horizontally mounted between the base and the hopper, a pin extending downwardly from 1 WILLIAM H. LARAVVAY. 

